- Sat
- Mar 2, 2013
- Updated: 1:51am
Trending topics
English Schools Foundation
The English Schools Foundation (ESF) operates five secondary schools, nine primary schools and a school for students with special educational needs across Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories. It is the largest international educational foundation in Asia and was established in 1967 by the Hong Kong Government to provide a seamless, affordable English language education. The curriculum, based on the British system which has now introduced the International Baccalaureate (IB), is adapted to Hong Kong and the Asia Pacific region. ESF schools, which currently teach 13,000 students, receive a subsidy from the Hong Kong Government but also charge tuition fees to parents.
'Educational apartheid' hitting expats
In Pictures
Editor's Pick
Victoria Harbour has been abused for decades, but the opening of the new Maritime Museum marks a softening of the government's attitude towards it. Nevertheless, writes Stuart Heaver, the battle...
I refer to Pierce Lam's letter ("ESF admission policy smacks of segregation", February 19).
I agree with Mr Lam's argument about segregation in Hong Kong's education system, and would even go so far as saying that this city is currently plagued by an "educational apartheid".
I share his view that the practice of offering two segregated systems of subsidised English-medium education - one for Chinese and the other for non-Chinese - is long out of date and no longer relevant in post-colonial Hong Kong.
I wish to add that, instead, we should have a "one size fits all" subsidised education system - one that accommodates everyone, whether it be local Chinese, mainland Chinese, Westerners, ethnic minorities or other foreign expatriates.
Mr Lam insists that we must respect our local schools, and further states that in Asian countries like Japan, expatriates who want public education for their children have to send them to local schools.
He even boasts about Hong Kong's local schools supposedly being "superior" to schools in Japan and in most of our expatriates' home countries.
I would like to ask Mr Lam one question. If our local schools really are so superior to schools in other places, why are we seeing so few non-Chinese members of our society sending their children to these schools?
One answer to that I can give is that local schools are reluctant to take on non-Chinese or non-Cantonese speaking children.
On the one hand, Mr Lam criticises the English Schools Foundation for promoting educational segregation, but on the other hand, he fails to acknowledge the local schools' contribution to this dilemma. So, because of this, the choice given to the city's expatriates is loud and clear: extortionate international schools, the ESF, or leave Hong Kong.
As many of us are aware, due to limited places at international and ESF schools, many expats are left with only the third choice.
As your correspondent correctly points out, we hear about expats in other cities in the region sending their children to local schools with seemingly little trouble.
I'm sure that this is another reason why many foreigners are leaving Hong Kong, as they search elsewhere in the region for better schooling opportunities for their children.
If this city is supposedly Asia's world city, why is our "superior" education system failing to adopt a similar approach to those of other parts of the world?
Andrew Nunn, Tai Po
After reading this article, people also read
5:11pm
IRDHK and the likes fail to realise
-
that ESF’s performance is irrelevant in public funding consideration
If ESF is qualified for subsidies, why not other English speaking international schools?
-
that being expatriates is neither a qualification nor an entitlement for special treatment
-
that there should be no public subsidies for ESF schools until they comply with
a) HKBoR (Art 1) and unicef CRC (Art 2) prohibition against linguistic discrimination, and
b) the Hague Recommendations Regarding the Education Rights of National Minorities requiring minorities to integrate with local community
thru the acquisition of the state language
-
ESF’s “international” curricula and exams are easier than those of local schools
Thus opening back door admission to competitive universities local and overseas
-
HK’s financial surplus and reserves are reasons that we should have the confidence
to do what’s right – to abolish and not to accommodate
the immoral colonial vices
of educational apartheid and double standard
9:08pm
2:17pm
But you complain about ESF which receives a miniscule amount of money per child from the government and mainly parents have to pay for their child’s education. And as you say they receive a worse education than if they went to a local school.
Why are you so upset that the government gives foreign children a miniscule amount of funding? Local Chinese students receive a massive amount of funding. It saves the HK government billions by having Children go to these so called inferior schools. You complaints make absolutely no sense.
Everything you say makes the status queo look extremely advantageous to local HK families. 1005 funded and better education.
12:41am
What I object to is the supercilious attitude of expats whose mindset still belongs to the colonial past. Pierce Lam's remark on education apartheid is most appropriate.
New York City's elite schools, Stuyvesant High and Bronx Science High, with no admissions quota for minorities are a shining example of equal opportunities in education. Decades ago, there were only a handful of Chinese children in these schools. Today Asians are 72% of Suyvesant student body and Bronx Science, 63%.
And I am not talking about just training these little geniuses to be future Nobel Prize winners. Fair competition is the way to go. Let the children's learning abilities and talents find the right class in the right kind of HK schools. Yes, we should foot the bill for all of them.
Though Ivy League schools legacy admissions still discriminate against Asians, we can learn many things from the US, all irrational anti-US sentiments aside.
No children in HK should be victimized by silly ideological disputes. Readers "bmr" and "pslhk" are galled by some white folks' attitude. But can you blame them?
10:12am
Put simply, if you are an expatriate and classify yourself as such then you have in all likelihood moved to Hong Kong to improve your income/career prospects. In such cases you should foot the bill, or the company that employs you at the expense of local talent, if you desire a certain type of education experience that is not availabe in the society that you are moving to. Try going to France and saying as we are bringing a business to Paris that will benefit Parisians you should provide us with heavily subsided schools for our children and ones that teach in a style that we like? This idea of heavily subsidizing foreign education is a major colonial hangover.
On the other hand if you classify yourself as immigrants, are willing to adapt to the local society, see this as your permanent home (live, marry, die) then Hong Kong should try to help your children master Chinese.
Expatriates, and I have to listen to them, constantly confide that the local eduaction system is rubbish - this is pure racism and then go on to complain that the Governent doesn't do enough to give their little Johnny a good education, they says its just too expensive - money.
The problem is we don't know how many immigrants we have who don't have Chinese as their first language.
2:26pm
Were children of these expats you're talking about to attend a competitive local school like St. Joseph's or St Paul's, their fragile self-esteem would be likely the first casualty. Just imagine, supercilious folks who constantly mock Chinese children learning by rote now witness their own wearing dunce caps in an algebra class.
9:46am
This is a dumb question. Has it ever occurred to you that non-Chinese members are afraid that their children may show up as inferior performers, which might hurt their chances in gaining admission to a great university?
Facts speak for themselves. Hong Kong 15-year olds are ranked top three in the world in PISA’s reading comprehension, mathematics and science year and year. Could non-Chinese parents have the same bragging rights for their home country?
Though children of Chinese immigrants are usually handicapped by their English language skills in the US, they have little problems learning every subject in English. Asian students taking advanced college placement tests in the US are 3.7 times whites, biology 7.5, Advanced Calculus 8.1, Chemistry 8.5, Physics, 7.4. The gap is even greater than that between whites and other minorities.
Chinese children are not Martians. They have just a little more discipline and intestinal fortitude. Stop bellyaching and just send your children to local schools to learn some math, science and Chinese. Good local schools don't discriminate against expats. But the competition is fierce. Be honest, are your children up to it?
Now a fair disclosure. I was matriculated from SJC more than 5 decades ago.
8:50am
-
Please point out where / what are the “racist comments” you blindly attribute to Mr Lam
Failing to support malicious allegation with evidence,
your accusation is libelous and ad hominine
reflecting racism entirely of your own
-
unicef CRC (Article 2) prohibits the kind of language discrimination which ESF shamelessly flaunts in it admission policy. It also excludes privileged education based on the racist practice of implementing two systems of English schools, one for Cantonese –speakers and one for all others. ECHR’s decision on the Belgian case confirms this provision.
-
Expatriates should be grateful for the chance to enjoy HK benefits
at the low cost of local tax, and not expensive global tax
6:48am
www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf
read this carefully - free education at primary level for ALL children irrespective of race, ethnic origin, religion etc.
